Schlafly Christmas Ale | The Schlafly Tap Room

Notes / Commercial Description:
Our Christmas Ale is a warming winter ale that blends the spices of the season with sweet caramel malt. Orange peel, juniper berries, ginger root, cardamom and cloves are added for spiciness. We use honey in the fermentation process, which raises the ABV without producing too much heat from the alcohol content.

Many breweries produce richer, higher alcohol beers for the winter holiday season, bolder than their year-round offerings. The inspiration for this beer came from spiced holiday beverages such as wassail and mulled wines. Around the holidays, the sweet and spicy aromas, not to mention the booze, in such libations tend to smooth the rougher edges of enjoying each other’s company and spreading goodwill.

Deep amber-gold color with small head and average lacing. Aroma is full of nutmeg and other dry spice. Taste is similar with a mouthful of dry spice, especially nutmeg, alittle too much. Feels ok on thr palate and definitely has an alcohol burn. Overall, not that pleasant of a beer, maybe just my taste...

Poured into a standard pint glass. The beer is a hazy copper color. The head dissipates quickly leaving nothing, and no lacing at all. The beer smells boozy with lots of different spices. I was hesitant to buy this, and the taste confirms why I shouldn't have: it's just over-the-top with flavor, like most of the Schlafly beers I have tried are. Sweetness and spices just blow your taste buds into defensive mode. There's a lot of cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and the likes in this. It tastes like Chai tea, and almost could pass for a Pumpkin ale. And just like their Pumpkin ale, this beer is loaded at 8% ABV and goes down too smooth, so watch out.

Overall, I just don't like the sweetness overload on top of the high alcohol content. Plus, the spices are in overdrive, so this beer is just a bit too much, all the way around. This might be the last Schlafly beer I ever try.

It's that time of year, right? Considered taking a six with me to festivities to share, but having not had this before I decided to test one from a mix'n'match section first. I am guinea pig...

Pours a deep but clear amber with tons of visible carbonation, lacing and a significant white, hollow but short-lived head. Smell orange immediately (though not in annoying proportion), with honey and a bit of cinammon I assume is from the clove. Hop character doesn't come up on the nose at all, if it's there it's all taste. Speaking of which...

The orange continues while the honey disappears & the spice comes forward. No real bitterness, yet oddly little residual sweetness either (the malt character is pretty anonymous as a result). Goes down thin. The 8% is super well hidden -- TOO well hidden to be honest.

I wouldn't call it a total loss, but the richness I expected for a big winter ale wasn't there. Schalfly let the additional ingredients do too much of the work.

Poured to a pint glass. Nice amber color with a 1 inch foamy head. Aroma of malt and caramel. Taste of dark malt & coffee, and finished with the taste of honey. Mild mouth feel. Overall a good choice for the Holidays!

T: Peppery with some pine tree notes. hints of cinnamon and all spice. lots of brown sugar and a touch of nut meg. the spices arent all that powerful but the all spice note sticks out the most and overwhelmed at times

M: Slightly hot and a bit chalky due to the spices. i would have liked a bit more of a creamy feel

D: Not my favorite of this style but a nice one to try. glad i did not buy a six pack

I know it ain't Christmas no more, but I got theis beer and it needs to be drunk.

A- pours a light amber with a slight haze.
S- has a malty nose and you can start to smell the spices up front.
T- Very malty and a ton o fclove flavors, almost too much. not digging it at all.
M- Sticky, syrup, somewhat thick.
D- Not gonna drink many of these.